The speed and scale at which disinformation spreads is one of the central challenges of our age. But if facts alone were sufficient to dispel rumours, conspiracy theories and lies then the far right in Britain would be out of business. Instead, it is flourishing, and moving into the political mainstream.
The home secretary, Yvette Cooper, has welcomed new police guidelines encouraging forces to release the ethnicity and migration status of those charged in high-profile cases. She had already indicated that she believed the guidance needed to change and urged the Law Commission to accelerate its review around what information can be released ahead of trials. The idea is that the shift will help to prevent a repeat of the riots that swept parts of England a year ago after lies spread that the murderer of three schoolgirls in Southport was a Muslim asylum seeker. Police rebutted the claims relatively quickly, albeit not as fast as some hoped. The truth did not stop the unrest.
